The Crimson Swordsman
by LordDrakanoth
Summary: Kirigaya Kirito, son of the Black Swordsman and Lightning Flash of SAO, is about to be the first person to travel through time. But when he does, his return portal...doesn't appear. Naively, he decides to try out SAO, to see what it was really like. Will he make it out alive? Will he change history forever? OCs, with interaction with main cast. Inspiration from An Accident in Time.
1. Prologue

**Hello, everyone! Thanks for reading my rather mediocre story! This is my first fanfic, so bear with me as I blubber through this. There'll be bad parts for sure, but just keep reading and I'm sure you'll find something to like!...I hope!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online. **

**Inspiration comes from An Accident in Time; if you like this, you should definitely read it!**

* * *

The scientist's shoes clacked along the linoleum floor as we walked along the longest hallway I'd ever seen in my life. My eyes glimmered with determination; no amount of persuading would make me back down now.

My name is Kirigaya Kirito, son of the Black Swordsman and Lightning Flash of SAO. My super-genius dad had finally breached time travel, and after a lot of persuasion on my end, I had been cleared to test it.

I wore my trademark crimson fedora and trench coat. Automatic sliding doors opened in front of me, and the scientist stood just outside the chamber.

I glanced around; I saw a bunch of other scientists working frantically at the controls, my dad typing furiously while still managing to get a few smiles my way, and my mom putting on a brave face and smiling.

I smiled back; I was ready for this.

"Remember, a portal will open up five minutes after you first arrive, then fifteen minutes after that, then an hour, then three hours, then six, then twelve, and the final portal will appear twenty-four hours after you first enter," my dad's voice said over the intercom.

"I know."

His eyes met my gaze, and I nodded. I went to stand in the center of the chamber.

A wind began to pick up, and I held on to my fedora. It grew stronger and stronger until it lashed at my face; a bright light began to project all around me.

"WAIT! STOP THE MACHINE!" I heard someone yell.

I saw my dad hurriedly press the abort button, but it was too late. My frightened gaze met my mom's an instant before there was a flash, and everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: Welp, that's the end of the prologue. Thanks for reading, and luckily I've got Chapter 1 already ready! Hopefully Chapter 2 will be up soon as well, so you won't have to suffer the cliffhangers _too_ long. *evil laugh* All (positive and/or helpfully critical) reviews are accepted, so please submit one! I'd love to hear feedback on my story - let me know what I'm doing well at, badly at, or just saying you like the story. Either way, I'll be perfectly fine with a review, and as I fumble my way through my first fanfic and trying to figure out this website (I think I'm probably hopeless ^_^), I'll make sure to respond to every review I possibly can.**

**^ Wow that's a long paragraph, sorry 'bout that. Basically, please review, thanks for reading, Chapter 2 out soon, blah blah blah. Just head to Chapter 1 already! - No, you don't have to, but you want to. You know you do. ;)**


	2. Sandwiches and Saviors

**Chapter 1, as promised, right after the Prologue. Basically, Kirito meets the first member of the main cast and finds out just where and when he is. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online. (How surprising!)**

**Inspiration for parts of this chapter comes from an Accident in Time. It underwent heavy revision, so I hope that it'll sound much more original now.**

* * *

I stumbled out into an unfamiliar alleyway. My fedora floated off my head as I fell to the ground, absolutely exhausted.

_Where am I? _I thought. _Heck, _when_ am I?_

"Dad said the portal would open up in five minutes," I muttered to myself.

_It will open up…right? Why would they stop the machine?_

I put my fedora back on my head and made to get up, but my legs wouldn't support me. I was absolutely exhausted and extremely hungry besides.

I remembered Dad saying that time traveling would drain a bunch of energy from me. I guess he was right.

"Ugh…my head," I mumbled. It hurt something awful.

I guess time traveling isn't fun and games, after all.

I sat there a while, pondering my aching body and growling stomach until I thought about ten minutes had passed.

_If it was going to open, it would have. Maybe it…_

No, I wouldn't let myself think those thoughts. I resolved to wait a little longer.

I could feel the time slowly crawl by, every minute an hour, every hour a year. The sun was sinking by the time I resolved that I'd have to go somewhere.

_Okay, it's time to get up!_ I thought forcefully to myself, hoping sheer willpower would help me stand. It didn't. I fell back onto the ground, my head hitting the concrete with a thud.

Someone must've heard or seen me, because I heard footsteps heading in my direction.

"Are you okay?!" I heard a voice say. "You look completely beaten up! What's your name?"

"K… Kirito," I managed to get out, my voice hoarse from lack of water.

"Can you walk?" she asked uncertainly.

"I can try," I said, and when she offered me her hand, I took it. My legs were still unsteady, but I managed to get to my feet.

I took an uncertain step. While I managed, I winced with pain; every step hurt.

"I don't think you'll make it home," she said. "I'd better call Onii-chan."

_Wonder who that is_, I thought idly, before trying to study my savior closer. _Hey, she looks kind of like Aunt Sugu_ (she wasn't actually my aunt, but since she and Kirito acted like siblings, she practically was an aunt to me). _Her voice sounds kind of like it too. Wait..._

When I heard her get off the phone, I rapsed out, "What's your name?"

"My name? Suguha, but my friends call me Sugu," she said, giving me an uncertain smile.

_This...could cause some problems._

"Do you mind staying here until Onii-chan gets here to help?" she asked.

"I think I could walk towards your house, if you help," I said, swaying on my feet a bit. Honestly, I was absolutely exhausted, but the determined expression in my eyes wasn't going to give up quite so easily. The Crimson Swordsman didn't become known for casual play.

"Then put your arm around my shoulder," she said, "and I'll help." I nodded my thanks, and we trudged slowly in the direction of the Kirigaya residence.

* * *

We'd been walking about five minutes before a saw a figure cloaked all in black run up to us. _Who else could that be but Dad-I mean, Kazuto? _I thought.

He walked up to us wordlessly and just draped my other arm around his shoulder. He was the quiet, reserved type, just like me.

But then when I was just beginning to think there wouldn't be any awkward questions, Sugu spoke up.

"I hope you don't mind my asking, but who are you? What's your full name?"

_Oh, great. Well, if I gave her my full name... I know!_

"Kirito Drakan," I said; a simple combination of actual and in-game names.

"Kirito?" my dad - Kazuto, I mean - muttered. _I hope that doesn't change his pick of SAO names. But that wouldn't change time too much, right?_

_...This really shouldn't have happened._

"Where were you before you came here?" she asked.

_I came from the future, but I somehow doubt you'd believe that._ "Uh... I don't remember," I lied.

"Don't remember?" she said sadly for me, but I knew it was only for my benefit; I saw the spark of uncertainty in her eyes.

"All I can remember from my old life is gaming," I said. _Might as well be semi-honest, right?_ "I did it day in and day out, whenever I could. I took all independent study courses, so it wasn't too challenging to find free time."

"A gamer, huh?" Kirito asked.

"Completely. Are you getting SAO?" I asked, already knowing the answer, but wanting to get attention off of myself.

"Of course. Are-" he began, before realizing I'd appeared in an alleyway, weak and exhausted.

"If I had the money," I huffed. _Just because it's a death game...I can't help but want to play it. Call it OCD, call it stupidity, I want to play that game. Nothing's going to stop me from seeing what they went through, even if it means my death! ...Do I mean that?_

_I've beaten Aincrad in ALO in record time. The original shouldn't be a problem, right?_

_I'll play that game, and I'll make it out alive._

_No matter what._

I felt myself slipping back into unconsciousness; this time I let the dark blanket take me where it wanted to.

* * *

I woke up in an unfamiliar room; Akihiko Kayaba stared at me from in front of a giant SAO logo. I could guess whose room I was in.

"Good, you're awake!" Sugu said. I smelled the delicious aroma of not just sandwiches but _toasted_ sandwiches wafting in through the door.

I sat up, to see Sugu walk in with a small plate of sandwiches and a happy smile on her face. I could eat them both in a bite, but I knew I'd have to pace myself or the sandwich wouldn't be only on the plate.

_It's times like these when I wish Dad didn't love sandwiches so much._

"How long have I been out?" I asked between bites of sandwiches.

The smile fell from her face. "Two days," she said.

"Two—what?!" I exclaimed, practically spitting out the absurd amount of sandwich I currently had crammed in my mouth.

"You were really out of it," she said. "I had to take the day off from school today to make sure you'd be okay if you woke up."

"I'm flattered you'd do that, but why?" I asked.

"If you just hurry along every day to help yourself and ignore other people, what are you going to achieve in life?" she asked.

"I guess you're right. Do you think you could maybe show me around, since you're not going to school anyways?" I asked hopefully.

"Do you think you're strong enough?" she asked, concerned for my health. Sounds exactly like Aunt Sugu—always caring for other people before herself. Like Mom, too, for that matter…and Dad. Wow, I know a lot of really good people.

I answered her by getting up off the bed. The sandwich had really restored my energy, and I'm sure the two-day nap helped too. I stood there, smiling and looking proud…before I realized I was just in a black undershirt and boxers.

"…"

"…I'll let you get dressed," she said, walking out of the room, blushing.

_Smooth move, Kirito. Real smooth move there._

I pulled out a drawer on the dresser I found in a corner of the room. Black shirt, black shirt, black shirt…crimson shirt? Don't mind if I do!

Ten minutes later, after raiding Kirito's dresser and finding only a crimson shirt and black _everything_ else, I was ready to go. I found my fedora on the night table, and put it back on.

The pants were a little baggy, the shoes just too large to be uncomfortable, but I guess it would have to do. It's like I had much choice, until my old clothes were done washing.

I happened a few glances around the household. It was clean and nice, but seemed rather empty. I remember Dad telling me that his and Sugu's parents had died in a freak car accident a couple years before SAO, and their other aunt lived in the house, but worked the night shift. The furniture they had was placed sparsely around the room. It didn't seem cluttered, but it felt homely nonetheless.

"Ready!" I called up the stairs.

"Okay," she said, walking down the stairs and putting a blue sunhat on her head, "let's go!" And then I was being pulled out the door and into the city I would know as home, 17 years in the future.

* * *

**A/N: [Insert cliche "Thanks for reading" phrase here]. If one person reads this, I'm perfectly fine with that, and will continue writing just for that one person. If there are ten, I'll write for them. If a person reviews, I'll most certainly mention them - and I'll write for them, too. Honestly, I don't expect my first fanfic to be popular, but if it is, so be it. I'll write for every single person who so much as glances at this fanfic, so thank you all in advance! I'll get to work on Chapter 2 right now. ;)**


	3. I Run Around Town

**I'll be honest, when I checked the traffic for the story and saw 15 views when I was going to post this, I was surprised. So, to those 15 people: this chapter's for you! Thanks! (At time of revision, the number's over 140. Wow, guys! Thanks! And these revisions are definitely going to be worth the wait, not to mention Chapter 4 will be out soon!)**

**Dis (is a) claimer: I don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

_Do we really have to run everywhere we go?_ I wondered. _If a person's been out for two days and you find them exhausted and starving, don't you think you could at least _walk_ to where you want to go?!_

I sighed. For some reason, I don't think Sugu really noticed my extremely loud panting and only wanted to get to the next place to show me.

My tour around town had lasted for a couple of hours now, and for whatever reason, she'd taken it into her head that she had to buy something for me at every single store. I was wearing a brand new crimson sweatshirt (which, honestly, I liked—she must've picked up on my favorite color), a pair of black sunglasses, and had about five different pins on my fedora, ranging from a Pokeball logo to a button that was completely plain, although it was crimson, which was to my tastes. I don't have any idea why I like crimson so much. I'll definitely be the perfect recruit for Knights of the Blood Oath, though.

"Next I'll show you the best café in the whole city!" she said cheerfully.

I couldn't share her enthusiasm. My brain was practically dead already.

She asked the nearest waiter for an outside table…and that was when I noticed that every single waiter was actually a waitress wearing a maid costume and any range of bonnets, cat ears, and other headgear.

"Wait…you took me to a cosplay café?" I asked.

"Well, after seeing you devour that sandwich, I'd decide you'd want to try the best in all of Tokyo!" she declared proudly. When the waitress who'd seated us returned, she ordered roughly 5 sandwiches for each of us (extra spicy, the way I like it) and tea.

I didn't really like tea, but I didn't feel like crushing her spirits by telling her that. She looked nice, in a sky-blue miniskirt, white blouse, and her blue sunhat.

"You really didn't have to do this, you know, Sugu," I said.

"I know…but you just have such a lonely, faraway look in your eyes," she said, turning just a little pink, or so I thought.

"Well…thanks, I guess," I said, before smelling the sandwiches headed toward our table. When my eyes alighted upon the pile of sandwiches on my plate and my nose detected the beautiful smell of them, I quickly changed my mind.

I got up quickly out of my chair, bowed to Sugu, yelled out a quick thank you to her, and sat back down, attracting the whole attention of the café.

Normally I'm pretty reserved, but…those sandwiches looked delicious.

She just looked startled for a second, then tilted her head to the side and smiled. "Sure. You must really love your sandwiches."

Well, when you grow up with Kazuto as a dad and Asuna as a mom…

I dug in. They were really good, _almost_ as good as Mom's home cooking.

I said as much to Sugu, mouth stuffed full of sandwich.

She nodded vigorously. "What did I tell you? Best in the city!"

As I was chewing my sandwich, I thought about how generally I was reserved and quiet around strangers. Then again, I guess I knew her as my Aunt before, so she wasn't really a stranger…but she quickly became my friend. I was always quick to talk to friends, but to a stranger, all I ever said was one or two word responses to questions.

Or maybe it was the fact she offered me sandwiches.

After we'd paid, she decided to show me around the nearby park. It was a lush green forest, with occasional beautiful clearings. Eventually we walked out onto a large area of rolling green fields in the middle of it all.

"Wow…it's beautiful, in its own plain way," I said.

We stood in silence for a while, watching the sun set…before I realized she was still holding my hand from pulling me along to every place possible.

I blushed and let go; when she realized what had happened, she blushed too and looked away.

"It'll be dark soon. We should probably head home," she said. I nodded agreement.

"Say, Sugu?" I asked. She looked at me with a question mark on her face.

"Do you know of any part-time job opportunities near here?" I asked.

"Shouldn't you be going to school? I could get you enrolled…" she said hesitantly.

"The things is, I'm ahead in all of my classes…I was taking all independent study, so it shouldn't matter if I didn't for a while. I don't even know where I went to school, anyways," I lied. I knew perfectly well where I went to school, she just didn't need to know it was the special school they'd made after SAO had ended.

"You don't know where you went to school?" she asked, looking as if she was going to hug me. She thought better of it, which I was okay with…while she was already beginning to feel like a sister to me, I didn't need us randomly hugging in public.

When we got to her house, she opened the door and called up the stairs, "I'm home!"

Then I looked at my future dad in his 14-year-old body. Deja vu, much? We probably looked like twins, since I was 14 too, except one was dressed in black and one in crimson. And I was infinitely classier in my fedora.

"Showing our guest around?" he asked. She nodded yes.

He turned to me. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine, thanks….Hey, I saw an SAO promo poster on your ceiling. Are you a beta tester?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Just wondering…I thought I might get a copy myself."

"Do you even have a computer?"

Coincidentally, yes, I did. I'd taken my laptop bag with me through time. It even had the latest version of VRMMO technology, the NanoGear. Of course, if they saw it, they'd get suspicious…and then I realized they'd be even _more_ suspicious if they found the family photo I'd packed in there.

"Yeah, in my laptop bag. Did you find it?" I asked.

"I put it in the closet for safekeeping," Sugu said. "I'll go get it, if you want."

"Thanks."

10 minutes later, I was sitting at my laptop, hoping my message to Yui would go through.

"Come on…come on…" I muttered.

When her face flickered onto the screen, I'm pretty sure I had tears in my eyes. I was just that happy to see her, to know I had _some _link to the world I'd left behind.

"Nii-san! You're okay!" she said happily, looking like she wanted to hug the screen.

"Yeah…Yui, why wasn't there a portal to go back?"

"I…don't know. Most of the information's classified; I just know that Papa told me something had gone wrong with the creation of the tesseract."

"Will I…ever get back?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said. "Besides, when and where are you?"

"…"

"Come on, spit it out!" she said. Transferring her conscience to an actual body made her a little…feistier, I think. But I guess most 12-year-olds are.

"The year's 2022. My location…is the Kirigaya residence."

"WHAT?!" she yelled.

"Shh! Not so loudly!" I chided her.

"Well, no matter what you _think_ you're going to do, you are _not_ playing SAO!" she said.

"I have to. I have to know what Mom and Dad went through, and this is my only chance to do it. I'm sorry, Yui, but what's the purpose of time travel if not to experience what was going on at that time?" I said, my "gamer face" slowly taking over. "I know that…I could die, but I've played more VRMMOs in my time than these people could possibly dream of. I'm confident in my skills as a gamer. Don't worry."

"Don't be an idiot. Even Kirito almost died a time or two, and he was the most skilled player in all of SAO!"

"As soon as I step into Aincrad, I'll be the most skilled. I've got two years of experience with VRMMOs; at the most, they have two months or none at all. I'll be fine, Yui. Trust me."

"Why do you want to go into a death game?!"

"Call it gamer honor, call it OCD, call it pure stupidity...but I _have_ to play that game. No matter what, I'm going to do it. I've resolved to do this, and I'm going to do it. It feels like I have to; like if I didn't, I wouldn't be complete. Yui..." I sighed, knowing she'd never understand what compelled me to do this.

"I love you, Yui. I'll make it back."

"Nii-san! Don't go!"

I closed the laptop lid and leaned back in my chair. I checked my watch; 11:00 PM.

As I crawled into bed, the pure gravity of the situation hit me, and that night, I cried myself to sleep.

_I can't back up my promise to her…sure, I have played a lot of VRMMOs, but can I really make it back?_ _Can I really survive a death game that I feel honor-bound to play?_

* * *

**A/N: I think that's literally the first time I've ever tried an emotional scene. I really hope I did it right. Once again, thanks for reading this little fanfic of mine! Chapter 3 should hopefully begin on SAO...or maybe just be some more fluff, I dunno. Hopefully not more fluff, honestly the story doesn't need it this early on. So for sure, some SAO in Chapter 3! I hope you're looking forward to it, because I've got a few hours to burn this weekend! :D**

**SAO forever! (and for that matter ALO! and GGO! yay!)**


	4. Link Start!

**Well, there it is, Chapter 3. Took my time this one, so I can only hope it's the best. Never really thought about how I was portraying Yui as a wonderful, loving sister...but then, I'm sure that's what she'd be. Anyways, like I promised, the dive into SAO happens right away this chapter.**

**And not to mention - over 60 views! Honestly, I'm guessing it's not that much, but I'm just astonished that that many people want to read this crummy fanfic. But maybe I'm selling myself short. Either way, THANK YOU SO MUCH. Enjoy!**

**I nearly forgot... disclaimer: I _still_ don't own Sword Art Online. Honestly, if I forget next chapter, I'm pretty sure you guys can figure it out for yourselves. I have confidence in your intelligence. So if I do, that's a rather meh thing for me. So, enjoy!**

* * *

I checked the clock for the hundredth time that day. 12:55.

_Just a few more minutes…_ I thought.

I was going to do it. I was going to play SAO. After a month's hard work doing random jobs I'd picked up, I'd saved up enough money to buy a NerveGear and one of the ten thousand copies of SAO.

Suddenly a "Call Incoming" popped up on my screen. I clicked on it, to see Yui's tear-streaked face pop up on the screen.

"Don't do it, Nii-san!" she implored. "Please! You might never come back!"

I almost didn't. Just two minutes before launch time, I almost gave up on my dream. But I couldn't, not now.

"I'm sorry, Yui…" I said, putting on the NanoGear.

"NII-SAN!" she cried. Just because she's an AI, doesn't mean she's not human…

But all I did was close my eyes and say, "Link start!"

I felt terrible, but...it's a weird feeling, but I felt I was going home when I did this. She'd never understand, and I may have just broken her heart...but I know that I'll come back. All I'm doing is going on vacation to Aincrad, and it'll just be a really long one, right? I'll come back.

The start-up checks flew by. I quickly chose a random look: blue hair, fat face, purple eyes...I looked horrible, but luckily it doesn't matter. I did, however, remember that clothing color didn't changed - so crimson it is. That, and as much as I might want to, meeting up with Kirito was _not_ an option. Doing something now might mess up everything he did in Aincrad, and cause me to not exist.

I quickly found all the quest givers in the Town of Beginnings and completed them in record time.

I played my first computer games when I was five. Got a console at seven. A handheld at nine. I did my first full dive at twelve, into the world of ALO. And when I got there, the first thing I did was hed to the Town of Beginnings.

With new ALO mechanics, bosses respawned. I completed the first 22 floors in only 3 months—and that's soloing it. It was a record; and only a year after that, I had conquered all 100 floors of Aincrad. I was a legend, known as the Crimson Swordsman, even better than my famous parents.

Killing a couple Frenzy Boars and Dire Wolves was nothing.

I checked the time; 5:25. Just enough time to turn in my last quest before the System Announcement I knew was coming.

I was already the most powerful player in Aincrad, but no one knew about me, and I'd prefer if it stayed that way.

5:30. Well…I guess that there's no going back now.

I'm sorry, Yui.

* * *

Honestly, I knew what was going to happen, and I was still shocked at just how emotionlessly Kayaba said it. He left us to die and didn't sound one bit sad or remorseful about it.

I wasn't shocked, however, to see people's figures transforming. I myself changed back to my normal self, so I quickly headed off for the next village.

If Kazuto—or rather, Kirito now—saw me, then there would be a problem. Most likely a major problem.

I kept my head down low and walked as fast as I dared out of the main square.

_Good, if he'd noticed me he would've said something…right? I sure hope so._

"Well, this should be easy enough," I said, drawing my sword and walking out into the field. The sun was just beginning to set; no one needed to tell me that it got dangerous at night.

I didn't need to tell anyone I actually cared. The Crimson Swordsman didn't plan on getting killed by some low-leveled monster.

"Too easy," I said as I effortlessly took out the last of a group of Dire Wolves.

"That was some nice swordwork," I heard a familiar voice say.

"…Great," was all I muttered before turning to the person that would become my dad.

"Thanks," I said.

"I'm heading to the next town. You wouldn't mind partying up for it, would you?" he asked.

_Yes, I do mind_, I thought. "Don't you generally fly solo?" I said, taking my fedora off to fan myself off; we could still feel heat, and I was sweating.

"Well, yes, except I thought you might want some help," he said. "I didn't see you in the beta test."

I sighed. "Kirito, just because your sister found me an alleyway and you came to help doesn't mean you need to feel responsible for me. I'm not a little kid; I can take care of myself. I appreciate the offer; I know you usually fly solo, but so do I. And that's how I'd prefer it to stay.

"Besides, I'll get there faster without you to drag along."

"WHAT?!"

"Cya, bye!" I said, and I began to run. I knew I was a higher level than him, and with a SPD and STR-based build, I'd easily outrun him.

I happened a look over my shoulder; he was glaring out of anger and also bewilderment as to why I'd run off like that. Then he looked like he was going to try to catch up, but then realized he'd never beat my speed. Then he just stood there looking helpless.

_He really wants to help me, doesn't he? _I thought. _He must see me as a little brother already...I guess I think of him as a big brother, though. He hardly ever asks to party with other people, so to ask me...I guess I should be flattered that he wants to help me so much, but I can't risk time itself. I can play the game, but I don't plan on messing up time by doing it. Sorry, Kirito._

* * *

I reached the second village without incident. Honestly, I've always found beginnings to be boring, but since I've already done this particular one and breezed through it my _first_ time, I was practically asleep on my feet from it.

"Might as well inn for the night," I muttered to myself sleepily. "Honestly I shouldn't be getting this far ahead so quickly anyways. People will learn my name…and that could affect time."

I slowly walked into the inn and paid for my room. Honestly, it would probably break any player's wallet at this point in the game except mine. I guess being a veteran has its advantages.

Before retiring, I had one last idea—I opened up my Message Box, typed in what I knew to be Yui's Player ID back home for ALO, typed out a quick "Can you see this?" and sent it. I hoped…

The reply was "YOU IDIOT!"

…Thanks, Yui. I started typing another message and was about to send it when an "Incoming Video Call" showed up.

"Since when can you video call another player?" I muttered, before realizing Yui was a lot more than a player. I tapped the "O" to confirm.

"YOU IDIOT!"

"It was painful enough reading it…" I said indignantly, rubbing my ears.

"How could you be so stupid?!" she hissed. "All you ever think of is yourself! Do you know that you could rip apart time if you keep doing this?!"

"I'm perfectly aware."

"Then why did you do it?!"

"I wasn't thinking then, okay?! I just wanted to see what Mom and Dad did! It didn't cross my mind once to logout!"

"You idiot…" she said, tears streaming down her face. "What if… what if…"

"I'm sorry, Yui." I put my face in my hands, feeling horrible. _God…I've just possibly destroyed everything, haven't I? I might not even exist in a few hours…or Yui…or anyone. My gamer side...sometimes I don't know whether to hate it or not. But here...it might be what keeps me alive, and what keeps time mended._

_Of course, if I hadn't bought the game, this wouldn't have happened..._

"Wait, Yui…could you get Mom or Dad on?"

"I would if they were home right now. Idiot," she cursed.

"I've done it now," I said.

"You'd better not die, or you'll have me to report to!" she suddenly yelled.

"If I was dead, I wouldn't be able to—"

"Shut up! I didn't give you permission to speak!" she yelled at me. I could hear her crying, even if I had my own eyes closed to stem the tears that I was shedding at just how bad a situation I had created.

"Yui…" I began uncertainly. "Yui," I said determinedly, "I'm not going to die. I'm going to clear this game along with Mom and Dad. I'm not going to mess up the timeline, and when this is all over the portal's going to be fixed and I'm going to be able to go home." At least gamer-side me is confident.

She stared at me, not believing my words.

"Yui, has your Nii-san ever lied to you before?"

"No."

"Then why would I start now?"

She nodded, then smiled somewhat sadly, but also joyously, for she knew that I had the will to survive. "I love you, Nii-san."

"I'll make it back. I promise." I ended the transmission, then lay on the bed, thinking over what I had said.

_Can I do it? Can I really?_

_I have to. For Yui. For everyone. I'll be the Crimson Swordsman once again…and I'll save this world, no matter what it takes. I'll clear every boss in my path, but I'll never meet Asuna or Kirito. My life may depend on it._

_But…I think that I'll have to meet them, no matter what. I'll deal with it when the time comes._

_Gamer-side me started this mess, so gamer-side me is going to get me out of it. No matter what it takes._

And for the first time that day, I felt truly confident that what I was doing was right.

* * *

**A/N: Would you consider that a cliffhanger? It seems like it's the most "This is the end of the chapter" end of the chapter sentence I've written so far. Meh; either way, Chapter 4 should be out...depending on my laziness levels, later today or early tomorrow.**

**Once again, I'll happily accept any reviews you guys care to write; so please, do write a review! Sure, it might look good in my mind, but really, if the reader doesn't like it, it's a pointless story, isn't it? Write your mind guys! And thanks so much for reading! I'll make sure to keep writing this thing! (although...probably not four chapters a day, that's more a Sunday-only thing. Sorry! :P) Just...thanks. Every view counts to me, and like I said in the prologue - I'm writing it for you guys. Every single one of you.**

**Just. Thanks.**


	5. A New Partymember

**I decided to skip a lot of the in-between part, since the anime (and I'm guessing novels as well, though I haven't read them) skips over most of Floor 1 as well. Luckily I had this typed last night; I'm sorry I didn't get it posted, but I was busy revising the other chapters to make it seem less a rip-off of An Accident in Time. Which, by the way, is really good - check it out! It's what this story was inspired off of! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own SAO.**

* * *

_Well, that was interesting, to say the least,_ I thought, as the meeting for the fight against the first boss ended. I was relieved to see that Kirito hadn't noticed me and had instead partied up with Asuna. _And luckily I haven't killed time itself yet._

As for my party, I had met up with another cloaked figure (honestly, why do these people like cloaks so much? It's sweltering), who seemed amiable enough and willing to party with me. Her—because the name most certainly marked her as a her—name was Vivian.

"So, I guess we're partying up," I began.

"Yeah," she said.

_Jeez, and I thought I wasn't a conversationalist…though honestly, that would be my response too._

I held my hand out to help her up. "While I don't talk much around strangers either, we might as well be friends, right?" I smiled reassuringly. "I'm about the most antisocial person IRL ever, but in gaming…well, no reason not to make friends, am I right?"

She pulled her hood back and smiled at me. She was…really good-looking, actually. Lustrous, shoulder-length black hair streamed from a finely-chiseled face. I think my breath caught in my throat, because I suddenly wheezed and inhaled.

She raised her eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

"N- No…" I said. I was definitely blushing, because she looked away.

Well, hopefully I flattered her, at least. Don't want this partnership to get off on the wrong foot.

I opened the menu and checked the time quick; 5:55. "Want to grab some food with me?" I asked.

She looked at me rather surprised. "I don't bite," I said, smiling.

She nodded. "Sure!"

* * *

After a satisfying meal of bread and cream (I thought of how Kirito and Asuna's first meal together went), I asked her if I could "Get m'lady a room." Of course she blushed; I knew she would. I'd never played the dashing hero before, so why not try it out?

Until I realized I only had enough Col to get one room. "Well, I can always sleep outside…" I said.

"No, I'm sure I have enough Col to get one," she said, before checking her wallet to found that she didn't.

I sighed. It was going to be cold.

"Do you have any two-bedrooms?" I heard Vivian ask the innkeeper.

"Yes, but it'll cost you extra," I heard him say, followed by the clatter of coins on the desk.

"You didn't have to," I said.

"I'm not going to let a party member freeze," she said. "Just as long as there's a private bathroom!"

…Yeah, it'd be pretty awkward if there wasn't.

Luckily, after finding out it did have a private bathroom and having a very refreshing good night's sleep, I woke up to the day that we'd be fighting the boss.

I stood up, yawned, and stretched. "Morning, Vivian," I said, seeing she was rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Morning," she said. I think she blushed just a little at the fact we'd slept in the same room, but honestly, she was the one who offered…and I definitely didn't want to sleep in the cold.

"I hope you have enough Col for breakfast, because I'm practically broke," I said.

"I've hardly eaten this whole time. In fact, yesterday was probably the first time I'd eaten in a couple of days….I don't need breakfast, honestly."

_Two days? She's just like Asuna_, I thought. "Nonsense! We need all our energy for the boss fight today. C'mon!" I said, beckoning to her.

"But I'm the one paying," I heard her mutter. "Besides…shouldn't you change out of that?"

_Oh, yeah…should probably change out of my pajamas_. _Wow, I can be dense_. "Then when we're changed, we're getting breakfast, and there's nothing you can do about it!" I said, triumphantly.

She just rolled her eyes. I decided I liked her. No, not _like_ like, just like.

She walked out of the bath in her usual white-with-crimson armor equips. _Setting the KotBO colors, just like Asuna_, I thought. I got up off the bed.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Then let's go get a boss!...after we have breakfast."

She sighed. "I thought you'd forget about that."

"You _don't_ want breakfast?"

"I _don't_ want to waste Col."

"We'll have plenty after the boss. C'mon, lighten up a little." I took her hand before she could protest and pulled her out the door and into a seat into the pub below.

"We'll have two of the biggest breakfasts you've got!" I told the barkeep.

"Honestly, I don't need to eat much—"

A few seconds later, the barkeep came out…with a couple slices of toast and butter.

"Guess you won't be eating much," I muttered.

"At least it won't cost much," she muttered back.

"Well, food's food," I said, before digging in. It lasted a whole two minutes against my ravenous appetite.

"You're a pig," she said as I wiped crumbs off my mouth.

"I just eat steadily," I said, my usual response.

"Yeah…sure," she said.

I made a sad face, then puppy eyes at her. I could see her self-resolve break.

Yep, I definitely share my Dad's knack for puppy eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely. I smiled, letting them drop. I took a chance and patted her head.

"Now let's go," I said as she turned red.

* * *

Just a couple hours later, we stood in front of the boss gate. Diabel's gaze raked the people before them.

"I just have one thing to say. Let's win!" he cheered, then turned around and pushed open the doors.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, that cliffhanger was REALLY bad! And now you'll have to be sad that it exists because I've got to get to school. I'm so evil... D:**

**But now, shoutouts to the wonderful people who have followed and favorited; thanks, guys! Davidmannex, MasterSpecter, General Rommel, and Choid for following, Ravenmaid, MasterSpecter, General Rommel, and Crazed King for favoriting, and and davidmannex and Crazed King for reviewing! Once again, thank you! And another thank you goes to the crazy amount of people who have read it.**

**I feel popular for once. Heh. So, thanks for reading, and I'll try to get Chapter 5 up ASAP!**


	6. I Hit a Wall

**Sorry this chapter's a little late, guys! I had a concert for school which took up more time than I would've liked, but hopefully this chapter's up to par! I typed it pretty quickly, so I hope that the story's good enough! **

**Speaking of the story, after that absurd cliffhanger, we get to the boss fight! Yay! All I'll say is, enjoy!**

**And disclaimer: I still don't own SAO.**

* * *

As I watched the boss doors slowly open before us, I turned to Vivian.

"Ready?" I asked.

"Ready," she said, a rapier materializing before her and replacing her shield and sword.

"Dual spec, eh?" I asked.

"If you're the one blocking, using a shield and sword's just a waste of weight and speed. I see no reason to not use a rapier instead," she said in the most matter-of-fact way possible.

_While a little logic's always fine by me, I hope she doesn't make a habit of it,_ I thought. Then I realized I'd probably never see her again after today. _Oh, yeah. We only partied because of this boss fight_.

From what I'd seen of her from grinding a little more Col and items before the boss fight, she was really good. She didn't have quite my skill, but then she's been playing VRMMOs for a lot less time than I.

The doors finally finished swinging open with a loud _bang_ (_someone needs to oil those hinges_, I thought), and Diabel hesitated for half a second before leading the charge into the room.

I saw the boss loom before us – Illfang the Kobold Lord. While I knew I could solo him right now, I knew that would draw attention. _Way_ too much attention. Besides, Vivian's and my task was to take out the Ruin Kobold Soldiers.

I charged the nearest one; when it moved to make a swing at me, I activated a Sword skill, knocked its sword away from me, and called out, "Switch!"

She was a blur as she flew past me and obliterated it with a sword skill. The poor thing didn't stand a chance against her unstoppable barrage of attacks, and that's the way I liked it.

I quickly tuned out the sounds of clanging around me, focusing completely on the next kill. We probably took out about ten of the things before they suddenly stopped respawning.

I looked around, only to see the bosses' final HP bar drop into the red zone. Time seemed to go in slow motion as I watched it pull out the completely wrong weapon and leap into the air.

I knew what was going to happen; Diabel was going to die. I watched, stunned, for a second…before my resolve hardened. I may have just been about to make the worst mistake of my life, but…

"Diabel, WATCH OUT!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, barreling into him while charging a Sword skill at the same time. He fell to the floor beside me while I quickly moved my blade up to block the beast's attack.

I literally think I sunk into the floor when it hit me, but I managed to hold on and yell to Vivian to switch in. Suddenly, all I saw were flashes of light as the beast was hit again and again, HP slowly dropping.

Vivian jumped back to wait for the recoil timer to count down while I prepared for the next attack. It looked like it was about to swing from the left, but when I moved my sword to counter, suddenly the sword was coming from the opposite direction!

I crashed into the leftmost wall; I saw Vivian jump at the beast, only to be knocked into me by a giant fist.

"Are you okay?" I rasped out. Luckily we didn't feel pain, or it would've been like my ribs exploding.

"I think so," she said a little shakily, her HP bar having just dropped into the yellow zone.

"Next time, try not to hit me when a giant swings at you," I said, rubbing my head while she got back to her feet.

"Yeah, I'll make sure to tell it to knock me a little to the left so I don't injure His Crimsonness," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

I sighed. "Then could you at least help me up?"

When I was safely back on my feet, I looked to the boss to see Kirito deflecting its blade and Asuna pelting it with attacks from her rapier.

Suddenly I saw the man who would be known as the Black Swordsman jump into the air and practically rend the boss in two. It burst into a shower of particles, obliterated by that final attack.

A congratulations screen appeared in front of me and the 40-or-so other players who had taken place. I checked to see if Diabel was okay…only to not find him among the others.

Or, for that matter, anywhere.

A sadness overwhelmed me that although I saved him, he couldn't make it. _Too bad it's probably for the best…him surviving could've altered the timeline_, I thought, hating myself for how unemotional I sounded, but knowing that him surviving could've had some really bad effects.

I tuned back into the surviving world to hear Kirito's voice. "Beater. I like it."

_And because Diabel died, Kirito still gets the blame. A cruel world we live in._

My gaze slowly tracked him, walking up the stairs alone, his new Cloak of Midnight equipped. I simply watched in silence as I saw Asuna run up the stairs towards him; he turned away, to disappear into the portal room and head to the next floor.

"And you!" I heard, not knowing who'd spoken. I stared at my feet, waiting for some other argument to take place.

Suddenly my head was wrenched up to look into the face of Kibaou. "You…you could've saved him too! But you just had to save your own skin, not jump in when the boss ripped him apart!" he yelled. "We all know you could have, but you beaters just care about yourselves!"

"Wha… What are you talking about?!" I screamed in his face. "I saved him once, and _in case you didn't notice_, I was halfway across the room! I didn't even see him die!" The pure injustice of it all just fueled my anger. _Do you think _I _wanted him to die, either?!_ "You're the one who just cares for himself! You just wanted to exclude us because you fear that someday, we'll wipe the floor with you, and there's nothing you're going to be able to do about! Despicable," I hissed.

I pushed with all my might against him, hearing a satisfying _smack_ as he hit the floor. I slowly walked up the stairs to the portal room, giving a parting glare to all those present. I had almost walked in when I heard footsteps behind me.

"Wait…Drakan…" Vivian began.

"They don't hate you for no reason," I said. "So if someone you know won't betray you asks you to join their party or even their guild…don't hesitate. You're a skilled player, Vivian." I silently clicked the "X" that would disband the party, and walked into the portal room.

The portal swirled before me, a vortex of blue particles and had a faint shimmering of the next town of Floor 2. The room itself was spacious, black stone, with a vaulted ceiling of at least 20 feet.

I felt someone grab my arm. "You're not going without me."

"…You don't want to be an outcast like I'm going to be," I said. "I fly solo, I always have. I'll bear this alone; you don't have to suffer on my behalf."

"You. Are. Not. Going. Without. Me," she said, adamant on her position.

"Why do you care so much?" I asked her, staring into her eyes. They were a beautiful shade of purple I'd never really noticed before, a purple like you see during a sunset.

"I've seen enough suffering in this game," she said. "If I can make one person not suffer, I'll do it. If I can even help a little bit with suffering, I will. And you I think I can help."

I smiled sadly. "I appreciate it, but—"

"I'm not going to let go until you say yes."

_Does she really care about suffering, or does she somehow see something in me? _I wondered. _She must care about suffering…there's nothing special in me, I'm just a quiet kid who never speaks up_.

Except around her, I'd formed an instant friendship. Maybe it would do me good to have another person around for a while.

"Soloing's overrated anyways."

She smiled at me, and I clicked the "O" to confirm joining her party when the screen popped up.

I guess, for once, I wasn't going to have to play solo after all.

* * *

**A/N: That last line :3. Anyways, thanks for reading! I enjoyed typing this chapter in the little time I had today, but if the boss fight seems a little clipped, make sure to tell me; I'll happily add more detail if you think I should! But first, some shoutouts to the new followers and favoriters (is that a word?) of my fanfic (I **_**really**_** didn't expect it to be as popular as it is. Thanks for the support!); but first, special shoutouts to Festus Flare and Krawling Khaos for their understanding of my bit of over-inspiration from their story, An Accident in Time! Make sure to check it out!**

**And now, for the fantastic people who just newly decided to support this fanfic: Logius Scriba and Festus Flare (seriously, thanks, Festus!) as new followers and Legionnaire Kael as a new favorite! Thanks, guys! And let's not forget everyone else who's viewed this story of mine! You guys get a big thanks as well!**

**Time permitting, I hope to get Chapter 6 up tomorrow morning; we'll be venturing into Floor 2 and seeing what trouble we can stir up with the newest member of the cast! Once again, thanks, everyone - I'll see you tomorrow!**


	7. I Hit the Ground

**Hello, everyone! I once again want to thank everyone who's read this far into the story! I'm having a blast writing it, and hope you're having as much fun reading it! All I've got to say for this chapter is, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

The portal ended up setting us onto a high plateau that overlooked most of Floor 2. The sun was just rising over the horizon, splashing a vibrant world of lush, green plains and sprawling forests in a beautiful pallet of reds, blues, and purples.

"It's beautiful," Vivian sighed.

"Yeah," I agreed, "but how are we supposed to get down from here?"

"…Oh," she said, seeming to realize we were a few hundred feet up for the first time. "Um…how about that path?" she said, pointing to…a yellow brick road. Of course.

I sighed. "Follow the yellow brick road," I muttered, slowly walking over to it. It could hardly be considered a path, more a slide because of how steep it was.

"I'd really rather not walk down that," I said.

"Then slide!" she shouted, jumping on and sliding gracefully with both feet.

"How did she do that?" I mumbled, before sliding, much more ungracefully, myself.

It was quite a rush, a wall of stone on one side and a sheer drop of the other. I'm not too fond of heights, but the wind in my face and excellent view nullified that.

Then suddenly the ground was rushing towards me and I was yelling "WATCH OUT!" and crashing into Vivian from behind.

"Ow," I said, flopping onto my back.

"Next time, try not to crash into me," she said, mimicking my tone from the boss fight perfectly.

"Ow," I said again.

"Oh, come on, get up," she said, already up and dusting herself off.

I got up slowly, rubbing my head. "Why do I have to be a test dummy today?" I muttered.

"Hey, look, a town!" I heard her exclaim. A tower barely crested over the hills at the base of the plateau we were standing at.

"Then let's go," I said. "Race you!" And then I was sprinting, feeling the wind in my face again.

"That's cheating!" she said, gradually catching up.

"I never said I wouldn't get a head start!" I yelled back, laughing. As I began to see the first house, I put on a burst of speed…before Vivian suddenly passed me right before stepping into town.

"You can buy dinner tonight," she said, panting.

"Yeah…whatever," I said, hands on my knees and attempting to get my breath back.

When we could both breathe properly again, we decided to check around town. There were a few quests that needed doing, but nothing too urgent, so we decided to retire to a nice-looking inn we'd seen near the town square.

As we sat down at a table to wait for our food, Vivian pointed at someone sitting in the corner. "Isn't that Kirito?"

"Looks like it," I said, not really interested; I didn't really want to talk and I know he wouldn't either.

"You should go talk to him."

"He looks pretty out of it…" I said, really not wanting to talk to a person who wouldn't talk back.

She hit my arm. "Go do it!"

I sighed. "Fine." I walked slowly over to his table, pulled out a chair, and flopped into it. "Hey."

He glanced at me for a split second before turning back to his hardly-touched meal of bread and rice. "Hey."

I sighed. "Look, she told me to talk to you," I said, pointing over my shoulder at Vivian, "but if you're not going to talk back, I'm just going to walk back over there and tell her to talk to you herself."

He looked up. "Then what do you want to talk about?"

"Uh…how about _that move_ where you split the boss in two?" I asked, hopefully.

"It wasn't enough to save Diabel," he said, gaze clouding over.

_This is going to be impossible, isn't it?_ I thought.

"Look, it's not your fault he died. It's because he wanted that last attack bonus, no matter what."

"You're the one who saved him from that," he mumbled. I had to lean in to hear him. "He stayed away, but when the boss suddenly went for him, I didn't have a hope of saving him."

My mouth turned into a grim line of determination. _He's not going to walk around, feeling sorry for every single person that dies in this game. I won't let him!_

"It's not your fault!" I said, hands on the table as I stood up. "If you had no hope of saving him, then you weren't going to save him! Don't blame yourself for not doing something you couldn't do anyways!

"People are going to die, Kirito, but you can't save them all! There's no way to save every single person in this game. If you feel sorry for every single person in this death game, you'll never get to live. _Appreciate_ what this world is, don't feel sorry for the framework behind it! Just because it's a game doesn't mean you should grind day in, day out, just to reach the next level! This is a world too. Live in it." I whirled about and stalked back to my table. I could feel his surprised gaze on me, but all I did was slowly eat the loaf of bread in front of me.

I sighed. "I hope he comes round soon."

Vivian smiled and patted my hand. "I'm sure he'll be fine after that," she said.

"Thanks, Vivian," I said, smiling just a little. I checked the time; 6:12 PM. "Want to do a little grinding for a couple of hours?"

She nodded agreement. "Might as well get some quests out of the way."

"Let's go," I said, getting up and reequipping my sword.

"I'm not done eating yet!"

"So for this quest, we're going to need a Poison Bulb, for this one, 20 Wasp Stingers, for this one, 10 Wolf Teeth…" I said, listing off the items from the quest logs.

"Hey, I know!" Vivian said, sounding unusually peppy, even for her. "Let's have a race to see who can get the most quest items! It'll be fun, and we'll get done a lot quicker." She turned to me, smiling, hand held out.

"Okay," I said, taking her hand and shaking it, "it's on."

We divided the quests so that we'd each have about an equal number of items and headed out.

_Good_, I thought, _with nobody around, I'll be able to show my true skill_.

I headed into the forest for the first item, the Poison Bulb. Apparently it grew off of a rare flower-type monster here.

And that's when I realized that there were about 50 monsters that matched the description surrounding me. "How is this rare?!" I shouted, before realizing only one had a bulb; all the others had…giant, man-eating, poison-filled mouths filled with razor-sharp teeth. Or I'd assume razor-sharp, at least. I didn't want to find out.

I pulled out my trusty longsword, Crimson Edge. "Bring it, flowers," I said, taunting them. If you can taunt plants.

Suddenly, they charged; I went into full berserk mode, cutting stems in half, lopping leaves off, stabbing snapping maws; my health was slowly dropping, but soon enough, the only thing left around me was scattered plant material, which quickly dissipated into particles. My health bar was just above the yellow zone from it.

I stretched. "Well, that was fun," I said, before slowly walking towards the plant with the bulb, which hadn't move an inch. I deftly chopped it off, and the stem dissipated into particles.

"That's one quest checked off the list," I muttered, before realizing I had grown _five levels_ in that battle. "What?! How…" I remembered Dad saying about this; he rarely encountered it, but if you defeated a chain of enemies quickly, you'd build up a combo bonus which would multiply xp and Col gained from that battle. Not many people knew about it, since it was pretty much suicide to fight large groups of monsters alone.

So suddenly, I went from level 12 to level 17 after 5 minutes. Talk about insane bonuses.

"Oi, you. Hand that bulb over right now," I heard a menacing voice speak. A person dressed in a brown cloak which completely covered his face stepped out of the shadows.

"Why should I? Did you not see me take out that hoard of monsters? Why should you be any different?" I asked, holding my sword point to his chest.

"Because we're smarter than flowers," the man said, as I watched five others step out to surround me.

"I don't think you are," I said. "The _flowers_ surrounded me too, and they're particles in the wind now."

I heard a deep chuckle come from behind me. "The flowers can't paralyze you," I heard the deep voice say, before I was lifting my sword up to deflect a needle coated with paralyzation poison headed towards my face.

"Good, you're all orange. Hurting you guys won't penalize me," I said, the untold threat hanging between me and them. I could feel fear coming off from a couple of them, but they stood their ground.

"Six against one, buddy," I heard the first man say, before pulling out a wicked-looking cleaver. Suddenly he was being blasted backward by a ray of light, along with another one of the party.

"Four against two, now," I heard a familiar voice beside me say. "Seems like easy enough odds."

"I agree perfectly," I said to Vivian, and we pressed our backs together to take on the remaining bozos.

I lunged at one, barely touching him but still almost putting him into the yellow zone; I kicked the other one into a tree, and saw Vivian taking care of the other two easily.

Then suddenly I was on the ground, completely unable to move. I looked over at Vivian; she was still standing, but barely. I saw the guy who must've been their leader slowly put the needles back into his pouch.

"Insolent little brats," he said. "I'll take pleasure in PKing you," he said, lifting his cleaver to slice my head in half.

* * *

**A/N: OH MY GOD CLIFFHANGER. I'm so sorry guys, but I'm running out of time this morning and the chapter was already getting pretty long anyways. Thanks for reading, and I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible!**

**Sometimes I think I'm evil, for doing this. Am I evil?**

**But now for a shoutout to , for not only following but favoriting as well! Thanks, everyone, for your support!**

**Wow, these A/Ns are way shorter than usual. I guess there's really not much to write about this chapter, mainly dialogue. If you don't like talking chapters, sorry about that! Every book has 'em, and they're pretty much a must to show how the characters interact with other characters! Don't worry - I hope to put some action in next chapter. I'll see you guys later!**


	8. A Long Day

**Wow, I was a derp and forgot to put this up while it's been sitting in the Doc Manager since last night! Yay, me! Sorry, guys - I'm trying to keep constant updates, but the world just seems to want to make this week as hectic as possible. **

* * *

**As bad as some of my cliffhangers have been, I think Chapter 6 takes the cake so far. I was once again interrupted by band tonight, so this one was a little hurried as well, and it also happens to be a big talking chapter...although there's some action in the middle. I'm sorry to say I won't get a chapter out tomorrow because of what else but band?, unless of course there's a late start. Which would be fantastic.**

**But anyways, make sure to enjoy as always!**

**Disclaimer: SAO is not mine, nor will it ever be. Unless I get one of the 10,000 copies in 2022.**

* * *

_Am I really going to die here? _Here_, on Floor 2, from some stupid PKers? Is this really how it ends?_

Turns out, no – I saw a silhouette of a player form behind Mr. Leader and slowly put a blade across his throat.

"Let them go," I heard the Black Swordsman's voice say.

Mr. Leader looked pale as death – and he would be, pretty quickly, if he didn't give up.

By then the paralyzation was beginning to wear off, and I could stand again. "I've half a mind to kill you," I said menacingly, "since you seemed to have no qualms with doing it to me. But if you go now and promise never bother us again, I'll let you go."

"I-I yield!" Mr. Leader yelled. "Please don't kill me, I never meant it!"

"As if," I said, but nodded to Kirito to let him go. As soon as the blade was off his throat, Mr. Coward was off into the forest along with his compatriots.

"You guys okay?" I heard Kirito ask.

"I'm fine. Vivian?"

"I'll live," she said, rubbing her arm where the hunting needle had hit.

"You weren't moving on the map at all for a while, so I decided to come help," Kirito explained.

"Coincidentally, I did the same thing," Vivian said. "Although I didn't help much."

"It's fine," I said. "It was my own fault, really. I should've noticed them coming up."

I was trying to put on an air of indifference, so I pulled my fedora down so they wouldn't see my eyes. They betrayed my true feeling – fear at such a close shave with death.

"We should probably go back to the inn after that," Kirito suggested. I nodded, as did Vivian.

We arrived at the inn shortly afterward, supping on a simple meal of bread and rice…again.

_Honestly, I'll be perfectly happy to get to the higher floors for some change in food_, I thought. _How am I supposed to live on carbs with a side of carbs?_ I sighed, knowing I was just trying to distract myself from what I wanted to say to Kirito. I decided just to get it over with.

"Kirito…" I began, feeling a little more confident when he looked up at me. "I think today just proved that it's dangerous to go solo, so would you mind joining our party?" Using my eyes, I tried to convey I wasn't the only one who felt responsibility for the other. He could be dense at times…but then, so could I.

He appeared to seriously think about it for a few seconds. I glanced at Vivian, hope in my eyes that perhaps I was getting through to him, until he simply said "No."

"No?!" Vivian exclaimed. "Those guys are still out there, waiting to PK any innocent person who walks by!" We were both concerned with him, it looked like.

He just shook his head. "I don't think they'll bother us again after today. Besides, you guys would probably just slow me down."

_Trying to get me back? _I thought smugly. "Strange, I said the same thing to you on Floor 1. Not to mention I happen to have the higher level right now."

"Yes, but I clearly have the higher level of skill."

"Wanna bet?"

"Bring it on."

I heard Vivian sigh. "Boys," she muttered.

"I heard that!" Kirito and I exclaimed at the same time. We glared daggers at each other. "Duel, tomorrow morning at sunrise," I said.

"Deal," he said, shaking my hand to seal the agreement.

"Boys," I heard her mutter again.

I glanced toward the town's entrance. _Honestly, what are the people going to think when they come in to two people dueling it out in the square? _I sighed. _Had to prove I was better, didn't I?_

_Oh well…the more people who see it, the better it'll be. Beater vs. beater, in a battle of supremacy_.

As the timer began to count down from 10, I slid my sword out of its sheath. Kirito mirrored my actions. Vivian just leaned against one of the buildings, looking vaguely annoyed at us and our displays.

_3…_

_2…_

_1…_

_Go!_ I thought to myself, as we charged towards each other. I parried his first horizontal cut easily, ducking under the feint that came after it, and sidestepping the vertical after that. As I saw an opening, I went for it, but suddenly his sword was locked against mine in a contest of strength.

"You'll never win!" I gloated.

He smiled. "Care to withdraw that statement?"

We broke apart, backpedaling a few steps. _This could go on a while_, I realized. _We're pretty much equally matched here_.

I tightened my grip on my sword and lunged once again. Soon the village was filled with the clashing of swords and the taunts of the two combatants duking it out.

After I had disengaged for what seemed like the hundredth time, glaring at my opponent, I heard footsteps coming towards us. "Okay, isn't that enough?" I heard Vivian say.

"Not yet!" we yelled, clashing swords yet again. Suddenly I saw it – I locked pommels with Kirito and rotated my blade so that his wrist would slowly twist. Suddenly I felt the resistance cease and heard the clatter of Kirito's sword falling to the ground. I nodded and took a step back.

"Good fight," I said, shaking his hand before brofisting him.

He nodded. "That little disarming trick was clever," he agreed.

"And thank God he did it, or everyone else would be at Floor 3 while you guys were still stuck in the first town of Floor 2!" Vivian said, exasperated.

"A guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do," I said, shrugging. "So, going to join the party now?" I asked, turning to Kirito.

"Thanks, but no thanks," he said. "One of the reasons I'm a solo player is because of competitions like these."

"You mean you're afraid of getting beat again," I said, making an "Oh yeah, I'm totally awesome" face.

Vivian rolled her eyes. "Okay, break it up, you two," she said sarcastically. "If Kirito wants to go solo, then he can go solo."

I looked at her in surprise. "But last night, you just said – "

"Shush," she said. "Go, Kirito, before he drags you along with us."

"I would not drag him!" I said indignant.

"Please," she said, "you're not going to win in this argument."

I made a pouty face. "Whatever," I said. "Now can we get back to questing?"

"Sure," she said, "but I hope you know that I've already checked three things off my list."

"I was swarmed by 50 giant plants that wanted to bite my head off! Not to mention those PKers!"

"Boo-hoo," she said, glancing over her shoulder and smirking at me.

I sighed. _She's right, I'm not going to win this argument_. I slowly trudged after her.

_It's going to be a looong day_, I thought.

* * *

**A/N: And there's the end! Thanks for reading, everyone! Now, the usual shoutouts to the awesome people who have followed and/or favorited!**

**A big thanks to Yamato Ashikaga for following _and _favoriting, and another shoutout to RockShooter017 for favoriting as well! And yet another giant shoutout to the crazy amount of people who have read this, whether it be only the prologue or all the way to here! Thanks, everyone!**

**Like I said, no chapter tomorrow morning unless I get the lucky break of a late start, but if all goes well I'll be able to get one out in the evening! (Although I do have church...so I might have yet another rushed chapter. '~') Thanks for reading guys, and I wish you all luck if you ever choose to write a fanfic of your own!**


	9. A Longer Day

**Well, here it is, guys (and gals): Chapter 8. I've been trying to keep constant updates going for this first week, but it really hasn't been working in my favor. I'll try to make it up on the weekend, though - but no promises! So, anyways, Chapter 8...I said I'd have action this chapter, didn't I?**

***sigh* Yui should send those "idiot" messages to me. Try to bear with me a little longer on these dialogue chapters, guys. Next Chapter's the dungeon, so there'll definitely be some action there! Yay, action! ... *facepalm***

**Also, I seem to be running out of good chapter titles. Honestly, "I Hit a Wall" then "I Hit the Ground" is kind of bad. But not as bad as "A Long Day" and then "A Longer Day." Seriously, me...be creative once in a while.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online.**

**Disclaimer2: If you're reading this story, you should enjoy it. Otherwise, stop reading. Because that's the purpose of stories. So enjoy!**

* * *

I sighed, flopping onto the bedroom's feather-soft mattress. Or, at least, that's what it seemed like for me. I could probably sleep on a rock and it would feel like the softest mattress imaginable.

The day was spent getting the Quest items that were needed for the rather large list of quests Vivian and I had accepted. It was worth it, though; we were extremely rich by Floor 2 standards, and the amount of powerful items we had practically filled our inventory up.

We'd decided to give all the items we didn't need to people who were just coming into Floor 2. We didn't need the Col, but they would most certainly need the equips. Normally I'd just vendor off stuff like this, but in a world where if you die, you _die_, a little charity was just fine with me.

By the end of the day, I had leveled up twice, taking my already-high level of 17 up to 19, thanks to the Combo bonus I'd gotten yesterday.

I was just about to close my eyes when a screen with the words "Incoming Video Call" appeared in front of me.

I groaned, but pressed the "O" button anyways. Yui's angry face appeared in front of me.

"You haven't responded to my messages," she said, glaring menacingly.

"They were all pretty much the same after the first three," I said, rubbing my eyes to stay awake. It wasn't my fault all it seemed she could write was "You IDIOT!" and "Do you know what might happen now?!"

She just gave me her scary face in response.

"Oh God…not the…scary face…" Where I, the quiet, reserved person who was rather antisocial to everyone but his friends (which he had few enough of because of said antisocialness), used puppy eyes to get my point across, Yui, the sweet, cute little angel, used an expression that looked about as demonic as anything else you'd ever seen.

Even her elder brother could become terrified of her when she was wearing that expression.

"…Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I exclaimed, just wanting her to _stop looking like that_.

"I'm glad you feel that way," she said, going back to her usual, smiling self.

"So what did you call about, anyways?" I said, scratching my nose like I did when nervous.

"Return portal progress is going slowly, but it should be ready in a little under two months."

"Good," I said, nodding. "But what if I'm still in here?"

"How long have you been in there so far?"

"Uh…maybe a month?"

"It's been three days here."

"Three days?!"

"Time seems to pass at ten times the speed on your end than on mine."

"Then why aren't you talking extremely slowly?"

"It must be a side effect of the wormhole," she said, glancing aside. Her eyes looked troubled.

"Two months for us…is going to be about two years for you," she began, slowly.

"Two…years? But… hey, that's about how long it took Mom and Dad to beat SAO! It'll work out perfectly!...Right?"

She nodded. "Hypothetically…yes, it should work. But if you mess up the timeline…" She began to make that face again.

I backed up a bit on the bed and waved my hands, rapidly shaking my head. "Nonono, of course I won't! Everything will be just fine, I promise!"

"Good." She showed that bright smile of hers.

I blinked my eyes sleepily and yawned. "Now, g'night, Yui," I said, making to end the transmission.

"Goodnight, Nii-san!"

As soon as I'd pressed "End Transmission," I flopped back on the pillows and fell asleep instantly.

I blinked, the ceiling slowly coming into focus. I yawned, getting up when I heard someone knock.

I opened the door to see Vivian. "Good, you're awake!" she said, then went into professional-monster-slayer-of-doom mode. "I want to finish the last quests we have so we can move on as soon as possible."

I stretched, realizing for the first time I'd fallen asleep in my combat gear. "What's the rush?"

She looked at me, appearing startled. "Don't you want to get out of this death game?"

I rubbed my left eye. "What's the point of a game if you don't enjoy it?" I said, walking out of the room slowly. "I'd say this world is safer than the real one, anyways. In this world, no one can just murder you while you're sleeping in your bed, or suddenly attack you in the middle of town. And yes, there are monsters out there, but there's a reason we all carry swords strapped to our backs, isn't there? I want to get out of here just as much as the next guy, but I don't plan on killing my spirit just to save my body. I want to have fun, too." I shook my head, trying to get the last clinging bits of sleep out of my head.

Vivian just stood there, rather dumbstruck I'd just given the longest speech I'd ever said.

"Sorry to get all philosophical," I said, turning at the stairs. "Now are we going or not?"

She nodded. "Yeah," she said, running to catch up as I slowly walked down the stairs and into the bright sunny day.

"I can hardly carry all of this stuff," I said, referencing the massive amount of loot we'd accumulated and were currently carrying because of our full inventories.

Vivian looked like she was having just as much trouble with her pile of treasure. "Well, we can't just leave it in the middle of town square," she said.

"I thought we were going to give it away anyways, so why not?"

She stopped for a second, thoughtful. "You're right," she said, throwing her pile on the ground since we were currently, conveniently enough, standing in the square.

I sighed as I threw my stuff on top of hers, stretching my aching back muscles. "Really, there wasn't a reason for us to do all those quests, was there?"

"We need the xp, and Col couldn't hurt," she said.

"Do we really need the xp? You and I know that we're probably way more skilled than most of the population of SAO. If we're a level or two behind, I'm sure we could make up for it in skill."

"Says the person who's level 20," she muttered.

I honestly needed to stop leveling up…but when you've accepted 20 quests where you kill 20 enemies, the xp racks up. "The first five levels were a complete accident," I countered.

"Were the other three?"

"_You're_ the one who had to accept every quest in town."

"I'm pretty sure that was you."

I sighed, putting my hand up. "I really don't feel like bickering after all that," I said, attempting, and failing, to relieve some of the back pain I felt.

"You should get a massage."

"Do you know any massage places in Aincrad?"

"Well, no."

"That's what I thought." I started to walk back towards the inn. "I think that first thing we do tomorrow is try to get to the dungeon."

"The dungeon?!" she exclaimed. "There are at least five other towns on this floor, all easier than the dungeon!"

"I'm level 20. You're level 15. What trouble could a dungeon possibly give us?"

She rubbed her arm, hesitant. "Well…okay," she said, caving in.

"Then it's a deal – we head for the dungeon as soon as possible. Hey, maybe we'll even take out the boss!"

"In your dreams."

That night, I dreamed of beating the boss.

* * *

**A/N: What else could you expect me to put for the last line? :3 ...Yeah, no clever one-liners are going to be had from me. Except "Thanks for reading!" ...That's just overused, methinks. But then I also thought I was going to have action, so I wouldn't trust my brain.**

**_Anyways_, shoutouts to thos efantastic people who have newly followed and/or favorited! First off, those fantastic followers: Allycat826, Aurumaqulae, TykkiMikk, and vlad-the-unpaid! And all the more thanks go to Aurumaqulae (I hope I spelled that right!) and TykkiMikk for favoriting! But don't think I've forgotten all you people that have followed and favorited as well - thanks go to you, too! As to everyone who's casually (or hard-core speed read, I dunno) read thus far as well - thanks to you too!**

**I do a lot of thanking as an author. But then, you guys deserve it.**

**Thanks fo' readin', yo! - I don't know what that was. Don't judge. ^_^ But seriously - I'll see you guys next chapter!  
**


	10. The Dungeon

**"I'll make it up to you this weekend!" *posts one chapter* Uh...well...I think it's a pretty good one, and it's got the promised action! So I hope you guys'll forgive me...just one more week of school before Christmas break, and then I'll make sure to try to roll some chapters out!**

**But like I said, got the promised action this chapter, and I bet you know what's going to be happening in this chapter. I haven't written many battles scenes before, but I hope this one will be up to your guys' expectations. There's nothing else left to say but enjoy! And the ever-present**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

"Switch!" I called out to Vivian.

I jumped back from the goblin we were fighting at the same instant she jumped in, rapier flashing.

The monster disappeared into a shower of particles as a loot screen came up.

"Nice job," I said to her, examining the new sword I'd just gotten to see if it was better than what I had.

"Thanks," she said, also appraising a sword of her own.

I did a quick look-around of our whereabouts; we'd been clearing out the dungeon and mapping it out at well. Everywhere else had ended in a dead end; this was the last branch we had left to check out.

"That looks like the boss door, doesn't it?" I asked, pointing to a large, foreboding door with strange symbols and engravings on it.

"Yeah, it does," she said.

"Wanna go in?"

"What?! We can't take on a boss with just two people!" she exclaimed.

"We've got the levels and we've got the skills. Why not?"

She looked at me incredulously. "Do you have a death wish? We lost a person on the _first_ boss, and that was with twenty times more people than are standing here now!"

"Most of the people didn't even understand how the game worked then," I said. "If something was going to get them killed, it was probably going to be themselves." I turned to her, my easy-going expression exchanged for a serious one. "I'm not trying to sound like I don't care, I'm trying to be honest."

"Don't you think that if a bunch of people clear a dungeon and find the boss has already been killed that they're going to be a _little_ mad they went through all that for nothing?"

"The gamers, yes. But no matter what, if they hadn't gotten the last hit on it, they would've been mad. Then there's the people who're scared for their life…" I looked down, then back up, meeting her gaze. "I don't care about the gamers. They can fend for themselves just find. But there are people who're petrified that they're going to die because of just one thing, but those same people feel obligated to be on the front lines to get out of here.

"Don't you want to help them?" I asked her.

Her eyes hardened. "For those people…let's do it."

I equipped my new sword, Wargsbane, after determining it was better than the Crimson Blade. "Ready?"

"Ready."

I tightened my grip on the blade and slowly pushed the doors open. They glided open, coming to a stop when they were perpendicular with the wall.

We ventured in slowly, the only sound in the hall that of our footsteps.

Then suddenly eyes blazed out of the darkness and rows of torches flickered to life on either wall.

The boss, called Jar'shka the Goblin Commander, was smaller than Illfang, but would still be taller than us if we stood on each other's shoulders.

It let out a bloodcurdling screech as Goblin Commandos flashed to life around it.

"I'm not so sure this was a good idea," Vivian muttered.

"Me neither! But we can't back down now!" I said, adjusting my sword so that I wielded it opposite the conventional way.

I lashed out at one of the nearby goblins to attract the others while Vivian wore down the boss's HP with quick attacks from her rapier.

As they began to surround me, I brought my blade up, sliced one in half, switched to a forehand grip mid-swing, spun around, and took out another three with a Sword skill.

I dodged another's swing and parried its comrade's. I took one's head off and skewered another's.

Vivian had gotten the boss's second HP bar down the yellow zone when I turned to help.

"I'll take care of its attacks!" I yelled to her. "You keep taking out its HP!"

"Right!" she said, jumping back as I brought my sword up to counter the boss's sword swing.

"Switch!"

She jumped in, activating a Sword skill and taking out another sliver of the boss's HP.

"Almost halfway!" I said as I parried yet another one of the boss's attacks.

We went on like that until it had reached its 4th and final HP bar.

I brought my sword above my head to stop its next attack when its fist came at me from the side and knocked me onto my back about 10 meters away. Vivian landed on her butt a few feet away from me.

"You okay?" I called out, noticing my own HP bar had dipped into the yellow zone.

"Yeah!" she said, getting back up.

I was about to follow suit when suddenly the air was driven out of me by another punch from the boss. I watched, surprisingly calmly, as the boss suddenly jumped into the air and fell towards me, its sword pointed towards my chest.

"Drakan!" I heard Vivian shout.

I closed my eyes and felt its sword pierce my chest. I watched my HP bar dip into the red zone, quickly draining down…down…down…

Then the boss was slammed against the wall and Vivian was holding a Healing crystal near me.

"It's only level 1, so it won't help much," she said, sounding extremely concerned.

"Level 1 will be more than enough to take this guy out," I said, gritting my teeth.

"Heal!" she said, and red particles flashed around me as my HP bar went back into the yellow zone.

I grabbed my sword from where it had fallen beside me and slowly strode over to the boss, which was currently lying on the floor, attempting to get up.

I walked up its sword, up its arm, and stared into those beady little eyes. I was about to take out the last of its HP bar with one slash at its neck…

When it vaulted up and threw me off. I grunted as I hit the floor again.

"Since when are bosses that easy to kill?!" she said.

"They're normal monsters, just bigger," I said.

It suddenly charged at me, its sword preparing to be brought down on my skull.

I brought my sword up at the last second, charged with a Sword skill. I thought it would deflect it easily, but instead I felt my feet _sink into the floor_. "Since when did it have this much strength?!" I yelled.

It brought its sword up once again for a sideways slash. I prepared another block and slid back five feet when our swords clashed together. "Get it while I have it distracted!" I yelled, but it disengaged before Vivian could move towards the boss.

Our swords clashed once again, but this time Vivian was able to dart in and take out more of its HP. Its final bar was now finally in the yellow zone.

I blocked its sword once again, my back pressed against the wall. Vivian went in and took its HP bar down almost to red.

_I don't have enough room to block this next attack! _I thought.

Somehow I managed to, though; my block met his forehand slash, and Vivian had suddenly appeared doing a graceful flip over its head, its HP bar hitting almost the "zero" mark.

Then suddenly it had grabbed Vivian and thrown her against the opposite wall.

"Vivian!" I yelled, before parrying yet another attack. I could feel the wall crumbling beneath me, its strength suddenly seeming ten times greater than what it was previously.

_Next attack, I have to feint, or this battle will never end!_ I thought, noticing Vivian sprawled unconscious on the other side of the room.

I went on the offensive, making for a lunge to its chest; when it brought its sword up to block, I sprinted the a couple feet towards it, slid between its legs, did a 180 while still sliding, jumped, and split the boss in two.

It let out an ear-splitting shriek, then disappeared into a shower of particles. A "Congratulations!" screen appeared before me, along with a second "Last Attacking Bonus" screen.

I ignored it and ran over to Vivian; both our HP bars were red, but she was still unconscious.

I held an HP potion to her lips, then gently shook her awake. "Vivian, wake up!" I whispered to her.

Her eyes fluttered, then opened. She blushed when she saw she was currently sitting on my lap, me holding her as comfortably as possible.

She quickly got back to her feet and brushed herself off. "Thanks," she said, before noticing _my _HP bar.

She gasped. "You're hurt! Here!" she said, handing me a crystal.

"I've got potions," I said, drinking one myself. I scrutinized the loot I'd gotten, before deciding the cloak I'd gotten from the Last Attacking Bonus was far better than what I currently had.

"Ready to activate Floor 3?" I asked.

She nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, I guess."

"You guess? We just defeated a boss on our own! You can't be afraid of the monsters on the next floor, can you?" I said, a smug expression crossing my face.

My goading worked. "Okay, fine, let's go!"

"Do let's," I said, putting my hands in my pockets and slowly strolling across the expansive chamber to the stairs that led to the portal room. I casually observed what the room looked like; it looked pretty much the same as Floor 1's boss room, although there were strange, rather dirty-looking banners on the walls.

The portal room, however, was _exactly_ like Floor 1's. We put our hands on the keystone to activate the portal to the next floor…

…when an all-too-familiar voice shouted out, "What do you think you're doing?!"

* * *

**A/N: I hope that's a better cliffhanger than usual. You'll have to guess who said it; I think you'll be somewhat surprised by who it is. At least, I hope. It just kinda came to me, so hopefully it'll be good ^_^. But anyways, thanks once again for reading guys! And even more gratitude is extended to the people who decided to favorite, follow, and review - or all three! **

**And now, thanks to those of you new guys who joined since last chapter: luckyseven67, and Yellowdog262 for following, ****CaptainC, Flurgle, and Thrashertags for favoriting _and _following! And once again, thanks are in order for those of you who are just casually reading this story - you guests or just people who haven't fav'd or followed! Thanks to all of you guys!**

******I'll try to get a chapter out tomorrow, but I don't know if my schedule will cooperate, so I apologize in case the next chapter's late - and I apologize for this chapter's lateness as well! Sorry!**


	11. A Confrontation

**It's the big 1-0! Double digits! Where the story gets good!...Maybe!**

**Err, sorry this one's late, guys. I had another hectic week - but now it's Christmas break! And I've really procrastinated on this one. Jeez. So sorry again!**

**I hope you enjoyed last chapter's cliffhanger. Last chapter's extremely prolonged cliffhanger. I'm sure you're dying to read what happens! Or not. Probably not. But that's okay! :3 Just enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own SAO.**

* * *

I turned, slowly and deliberately, at the sound of Kibaou's accusing voice.

"You think you two beaters can just kill a boss without telling anyone and take all the credit for it?!" he shouted at my face. "Well, you're wrong!"

I rolled my eyes incredulously and turned back around. "I'll make sure to let the next boss skin your hides, then," I said, once again putting my hand on the keystone.

He grabbed my arm. "You're not just going to—"

My annoyance level hit maximum then. I was tired of this guy trying to tell me what to do like he actually knew how to be a leader. "Draw your sword."

"What?" he asked, letting go of my arm and taking a step back.

I slid my sword out of its sheath, the sound of metal scraping on metal filling the room. "I said, draw your sword."

"Why should I?"

My sword flashed a centimeter from his ear. "Draw. Your. Sword."

His eyes grew wide as he quickly fumbled to get his sword out of its sheath. When he'd finally gotten into a stance, my sword once again flashed toward his ear. It met no resistance, and this time the distance was halved.

"You can't even block. And you think you can take on a boss?" I taunted.

Once again my sword flashed, but this time his sword met mine in a clumsy block that did end up somehow stopping my blade, but also sending him back a few steps. His lackeys grew wide-eyed and took a step back.

"That was the worst block I've ever seen. Again."

His block was much more solid again, but I deftly slid my crossguard to meet his, twisted my blade just so, and suddenly his sword was clattering on the ground.

"Pitiful. I beg you, keep this in mind next time you try to stop me from sending you to your death."

I put my hand on the keystone for the third time that day, and together with Vivian activated the portal to Floor Three. She looked at me a little wide-eyed, but when I stepped through the portal she followed.

We appeared in a serene river valley. There was a picturesque little village by a glistening lake, surrounded by a forest of deciduous trees. The place where we stepped out from the portal was on a small rise near the village. A dirt path led the way into town.

"Did you really need to make such a show of that?" Vivian asked, turning to me.

"He needed a lesson in obeying his superiors," I said, my mouth set in a firm, hard line. "I don't know who he thinks he is, but the only person who's going to be bossing me around is if Akihiko himself appeared in front of me. And I sincerely doubt that's going to be happening anytime soon."

She kicked up some dirt thoughtfully. "You didn't have to be quite so scathing about it."

"He needs a lesson he can remember. And hopefully after that show, his lackeys won't be quite so sure about following him anymore. If that guy becomes a leader, we're all screwed."

I put a hand in one of my pants pockets and began the short trek to the village. Vivian jogged a bit to catch up after realizing I'd begun moving.

"Should we even bother doing the quests here?" Vivian asked.

"We might as well stockpile stuff like we did last floor. I'm sure a lot of people appreciated it, and those who didn't are just stuck-up snobs or hardcore gamers anyway."

She nodded. "That's what I was thinking."

I smirked. "Great minds think alike," I said.

"I wouldn't classify your mind as _great_," Vivian said, smirking herself.

I hit her on the arm, then ran towards the village. "Then it's a good thing I know when to run!"

"Come back here!" she said, running to catch up. I laughed, knowing to take these moments as they came – because the next day, you might never get another.

I eyed my newest quest reward thoughtfully. _Broadsword or longsword…broadsword or longsword…_

I put my hands on my knees and leaned back in my chair. "Vivian, would you rather use a broadsword or a longsword?"

"Well," she said, her eyes sparking at sword-talk (_She's the first girl I've met who'd rather talk about swords than clothes_, I thought), "I generally go with the broadsword, since it's more defensive and I use a shield with it, but since you prefer not to use shields for whatever reason, I'd go with the longsword."

I rolled my eyes. "You could've just said longsword," I said, inspecting the fancy sheath said blade came in.

"I've gotta create conversation somehow, Mr. Antisocial," she said.

"Oh come on, I talk around you at least."

"I'm the only one."

"I talk with Kirito!" I protested.

"How many times have we seen Kirito?"

Seeing as I could count that number on one hand, I decided to stop arguing.

I sighed. "Can we have lunch now?"

"When you admit I'm right."

I smirked. "I packed my own lunch anyways."

She looked at me in surprise at my preparedness for once, then just got an annoyed expression on her face while she waited for her lunch to materialize.

Meanwhile I was digging into a delicious bento served at the village restaurant – which, for reasons I would never understand, had takeout. I guess you learn to make on-the-go meals when there are a bunch of adventurers strolling through your town.

"This is delicious," I said, taunting her as her menu seemed to lag. "Absolutely delectable. Beautifully succulent. Amazingly moist."

She slapped me. I continued on, heedless.

"Perfectly arranged in a most agreeable fashion."

She slapped me.

"Definitely the most delightful thing my taste buds have had the pleasure of tasting since we came here."

She slapped me.

"It's—"

She poised to slap me again when her bento finally appeared on the table. "About time!" she said, annoyed.

I put my smug expression on and finished eating.

"Little dry," she grumbled.

"You should try mine," I said, smiling brightly. "Oh wait, it's already gone!"

She huffed. "Could you please _stop_ taunting me now?"

"Excuuuuuuuuuuuse me, princess," I said, quoting what my dad described as "One of the worst tributes to gaming in history."

She slapped me.

"Ow!" I said, rubbing my rose-red cheek. "Would you _please_ stop doing that?"

She glared at me.

"Fine, fine, I'm done," I said. I held my hand out. "Shake, and we'll forget about it."

She shook, still wearing that same annoyed expression and sucking up a noodle. I couldn't help but laugh because of the anime expressions SAO gave us.

"What now?" she asked haughtily.

"Nothing, nothing," I said, slinging my sword's sheath over my shoulder. I walked out the door.

"I'll see you, after I win the questing marathon," I threw over my shoulder.

"In your dreams!" she yelled back.

_Oh, rivalry_, I thought. _Why must you be so utterly amusing?_

I had walked a little ways into the woods when suddenly everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: "Hmm, I need a cliffhanger. I know, how about a random sentence at the end of the chapter?!" "Genius, me, genius! Why are you so smart?!" "I DON'T KNOW!"**

**Self conversation upon realizing I'd typed that cliffhanger. Wow, it's horribly sudden. _ And now I have to write around it too! Yay me, digging holes for myself that I decide not to climb out of.**

**On another note, in case I don't get another chapter out for a while, happy holidays to everyone! Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa...erm, that's about it. I'd say Happy Hanukkah, but that would be a little late, wouldn't it? :P I hope you guys have a great time! I know I will...or at least, I'd assume I will!**

**I'd make yet another list for all those fantastic people who followed and favorited in my absence...but I'm afraid that it would be too long for me to fit all the names! Probably not, I'm not famous...just laziness for me. Err. But thank you! I love you guys and your support for this story! Thank you so much, again! Honestly, do I have to type this every chapter?!**

**YES I DO! Because you guys are just that awesome! :D**

**So, I hope you guys are looking forward to next chapter...because I'm looking forward to writing it! Eventually. When I'm not procrastinating...I just dug myself another hole, didn't I? *sigh* But thanks for reading, everyone! I'll get next chapter out...er, hopefully before next year.**

**No promises. I'm no good with promises. 3: Nonetheless! Anyways, off to watch more anime - I'll see you guys later! Thanks for reading!**


	12. Blackout

**Hey, I did actually get it out before next year! And not even on New Year's Eve! *proud***

**Not much to say about this chapter. Sometimes I wonder if I have too much talking; but I guess the beginning of a story is usually slow. I want everyone to know that I won't be doing a few chapters for every single floor in Aincrad...this thing would be over 200 chapters long then. And that's sorta ridiculous.**

**Not sorta, completely. But anyways-I hope you guys enjoy reading as usual!**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own SAO.**

* * *

"Ugh…my head…" I muttered, gripping said body part. _I thought you didn't feel pain in SAO…_

"Are you okay?" I heard someone say. "I found you passed out in the middle of the forest, and was worried something had happened to you."

"I'm…fine," I said, sitting up and opening my eyes.

It looked like I was in the inn in town. I seemed to be laying on the only bed in the room. Standing at the foot of said bed…was Asuna.

_It looks like if time's screwed, I don't have a choice in the matter, do I?_

_Wait…didn't Mom say she found someone in the woods on Floor 3, passed out, and thought it was weird because people didn't pass out in SAO? I can't remember…_

A sudden spike of pain made me grunt and stop trying to remember.

"Can you stand?" Asuna said.

"I think so," I said, staggering to my feet. I felt a little unsteady, but I managed to stay on my feet.

"Thanks for doing this, but you really didn't need to," I said, walking towards the door. "I'll be leaving now."

"What?! You were passed out under a minute ago!"

"I'll be fine," I persisted.

"But—"

"Thanks." I opened the door and walked away, not wishing to mess up time. Well, more than I had.

_At least I finished all my quests, somehow_, I thought, walking through the inn tavern. Looked like a bunch of players were already here, being merry about their victory of getting on Floor 3.

_Even though it's ours_, I thought, opening the door, to be greeted by a refreshing nighttime breeze.

I walked toward the nearest quest location when I bumped into someone.

"Sorry," I muttered, not bothering to look up from the ground.

"_There_ you are!" I heard Vivian say when she grabbed my arm. "I was wondering where you'd gotten to!"

"I, er, had some trouble," I said. "I was just about to turn in my quests."

"See you tomorrow, then," she said, walking towards the inn.

_I'm surprised she didn't bother to start a conversation_, I thought. _Unlike her, not that I mind_.

* * *

Roughly an hour later, I was sitting down at a table with Vivian.

"So, I think I won that," she said, smug.

"Pfft. I was done questing yesterday," I said, crossing my arms and leaning back in my chair.

"You said you were going to continue questing this morning," she pointed out.

"Couldn't make you feel _too_ bad," I said.

"Yeah, right," she said.

"I am," I said, before hitting the floor with a _bang_. "Ow!"

She giggled. "Really?"

"Maybe I should raise my AGL," I said.

"I think INT would be a little better for you," she said, holding a hand out to help me up.

"Thanks," I muttered.

As I was getting up, I noticed a waitress walking around with a rather large platter of sandwiches, going to every table and seeming to ask whether someone had ordered it.

Finally she came to our table. "Did you order an…" She looked at the ticket, but it seemed to be so long she didn't bother listing it off. "Did you order a large assortment of sandwiches?"

"Sounds like my order," I said, taking it off her.

"Er…"

"He's a big eater," Vivian explained, smiling at the look of bewilderment we didn't know NPCs could muster.

"A big…" She bowed. "Could I get you anything else?"

I shook my head no, unable to talk through a mouthful of sandwich. Vivian also politely declined, taking small, sensible bites of her own sandwich.

"Do you really have to be such a pig?" she said, looking disgusted at my …well, I guess pigginess.

"I have a ravenous appetite," I said, before shooting a look of dismay at the almost-empty sandwich platter.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm extremely happy that we've never had the two-bedroom situation again."

"Ditto. You snore."

"What?!"

I practically fell on the floor at her hilariously outraged expression. "That look…is priceless!"

Her expression went from outraged to indignant.

I wiped a tear from my eye. "Sorry, I couldn't resist."

"I never knew you could laugh so hard," she said.

I instantly stopped when I noticed all the people staring at me. I glared at them, and they pretty quickly stopped their stares. "Well, it's not often I see _that_ particular expression."

"…Y'know, I thought you were antisocial, but then you burst out laughing where everyone can hear you."

"I don't mind sticking out a little when with friends."

"Surprising."

"I'm full of surprises," I said, subtly sarcastic.

"Oh, really?" she said, slightly less subtly sarcastic.

I thought of Dad's special skill. "Everyone has surprises."

I stood up and stretched. "Well, if we're going to the dungeon tomorrow, I'ma hit the sack."

"Think we're ready?" she asked.

"Why wouldn't we be?" I walked towards the stairs and gave a casual wave over my shoulder. "Cya in the morning."

"'Night."

* * *

Dust clouds floated gently up where we trod.

"Really good view up here," I said, looking down from our cliffside path. It was a good view; you could see the whole valley from this height—the quaint little village by the lake, the glistening river flowing down from the mountain…scenic.

Vivian just nodded in response. She looked a little uncomfortable for some reason.

"Are you okay?" I asked. She nodded uncertainly, still looking uncomfortable.

"…Are you scared of heights?" I asked.

She blushed and hugged herself. "No, I'm afraid of falling."

"So was I, until I told myself I wasn't going to fall." I smiled at her. "Come on, we'll be out of these mountains…soon…"

I trailed off, because when we came over the mountain ridge…we saw air. Lots and lots of air.

Floor 3…was a bunch of floating islands. It looked really cool; a bunch of giant islands floating in the air. Of course, since I'd played the Final Fantasy VRMMORPG that came out shortly after my 12th birthday, I wasn't that in awe. And of course, I doubt Vivian was either, since she was surrounded by...well, absolutely nothing.

I walked out onto what looked like a wooden dock. A Final Fantasy-style airship was docked at the end.

"How much is passage to the dungeon?" I asked an NPC who appeared to be a captain. He wore a captain hat and a fancy cape, so I could only assume.

"500 Col."

I handed over the thousand Col for passage for two, then turned to Vivian. "C'mon."

"I'm…not sure I can move," she said, looking absolutely petrified at the empty space all around her, standing at the beginning of the dock.

I walked over to her and put an arm around her shoulder. She blushed at the close contact, but I squeezed her anyways. "If you believe you won't fall, you won't fall. So believe."

"I don't think I can believe I won't fall. What if there's…a strong wind or…or…air pirates?"

"Air pirates?" I scoffed. "Do you really think there are _air pirates_?"

"Where there's a sea, there's pirates," she said, shrugging my arm off her shoulder. "And isn't the sky just a sea of air?"

Talking seemed to calm her down, as she'd started walking towards the airship. "I guess you're right," I admitted. "But still, what's the chance of us actually encountering _air pirates_?"

"You can stop italicizing it," she said, walking across the ship's gangplank. "It's not that incredulous."

I shrugged. "By the way, you're on the ship now."

"Really?" Her eyes widened.

"Just don't look around and keep talking."

"Too…late," she said, backing into the main mast.

I sighed. "At least we can go now. We'll make it to the dungeon no problem, you'll see."

Five minutes later, we were heading off into open air.

Ten minutes later, we got hit by an explosion.

"What was that?!" Vivian screamed.

"Air pirates!" a crewmember shouted.

"Seriously?" I muttered, drawing my sword. "Well, I guess we're protecting the ship now."

Air pirates. I have some great luck.

* * *

**A/N: Well, I didn't really know how to end this chapter...I didn't want to drag it out too much. It already hit five pages, one of my longest chapters so far (in Word, at least). If I put the battle in, it'd probably be longer than I'd have liked...and I need to give you guys something to look forward to, right?**

**Anyways, don't expect a new chapter until next year; I'm on a family reunion, and I'm kinda surprised I got a chapter out at all...but you guys are awesome, so I did it. ^_^**

**Once again, thanks to everyone for reading, favoriting, following, and reviewing! Like I said, you guys are awesome!**

**Thanks for reading, everyone! I'll see everyone later!**


	13. Air Pirates

**HAPPY NEW YEARS, EVERYONE! Should everything go well, this will be released exactly midnight, Central Time.**

**And if it is, it'll be the most awesome chapter ever. And there are pirates. Pirates are awesome, but not as awesome as ninjas. But air pirates might beat out ninjas. But then there are air _ninjas_.**

**Heh, just kidding, just kidding. But seriously, what's cooler than a chapter released exactly on New Years? Nuffin', that's what.**

**Wow, I'm being weird this A/N, so I'll just shut up and say "Enjoy!"**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sword Art Online.**

* * *

Another explosion rocked the ship.

"_Why_ does it _have_ to be _air pirates_?!" I yelled at the world, cursing my luck.

What looked to be a grappling hook's end whizzed past my ear, with a human shape whizzing straight behind it.

My sword sprung out of its sheath. "Vivian! Can you fight?" I yelled through the smoke cloud that had blossomed around the ship.

"As long as I can't see the sky, I'll be fine!" she replied, back to her usual confident self.

"Then help me with this guy!" I yelled back, engaging the air pirate who'd appeared before me.

Just as soon as our swords kissed each other, I was hit in the back by a pair of boots and flung forward into the main mast.

"Another?!" I yelled, when a hand appeared to help me up.

"It's two on two, then," Vivian said, getting me back on my feet.

"I was fine with the odds, they just had me at a disadvantage," I said.

"Then why'd you call me to help?"

"Faster!" I said, lunging toward the air pirate nearest me. He wore standard aviator goggles and leather armor, fortified with some blue metal and trimmed with gold.

_Pretty lavish, for stuff on Floor 3_, I thought. _But then, pirates are always lavish._

I disarmed the first one with a vicious sidearm slash, then blasted him backwards with a kick to the stomach. I looked over in the other's direction to found Vivian had defeated hers as well, it disappearing in a shower of particles.

"You didn't have to kill it!" I said. "They're humans!"

"I didn't kill her," she replied. "They're players. That was just her equipment disintegrating."

"They're players?" I asked. "No wonder the NPCs aren't responding."

So far all they'd done was just stand around and continue flying the ship. I doubted they'd stop doing as such any time soon, either.

"So, what'd'you say we take the fight to them?" I asked, putting a foot on the guardrail.

"Think you can jump it?"

"Are you doubting me?" I said, smirking, before launching myself off the guardrail and landing solidly on the opposing ship's planked floor.

"Who are you?!" one of them, a big, muscular man with a particular sailor-fitting mustache, asked.

"And what do you want?" asked a skinnier one, who looked like a deck hand.

"You're the one who attacked our ship," I said. "I should ask _you_ the questions, I think."

"You're outnumbered and outclassed," Muscle Man said.

"I agree with the former, not with the latter," I said, as Vivian landed beside me. "Oh hey, and there goes your first advantage as well," I said, smirking. "Let's take 'em out."

"Gladly," she said, backing into me so we could cover each other's weak spot. "I don't take kindly to being exploded."

"Coincidentally, so do I," I said, lunging at Deck Hand.

He pulled a dagger out of nowhere, but I easily sidestepped his desperate thrust and sent said dagger spinning through the air to land in the deck. Vivian had just as little trouble as I had Muscle Man.

"Guess they sent the best to take out the ship," I said.

"I'd have to disagree," said a lordly voice, to accompany a lordly figure – flowing, black velvet cape, accompanied by a lavishly embroidered sky-blue tunic, fancy riding boots…this guy had it all, including an extremely ornate rapier. "The best is standing in front of you."

"Should I bow to the captain?" I asked sarcastically.

"If you know what's good for you," he said, motioning to two other pirates who'd appeared from the door to the lower decks.

"Guess I don't," I said whilst moving into a battle stance.

He nodded in my direction to one of his bodyguards and at Vivian to the other. The both drew greatswords and advanced towards us menacingly.

"Please," Vivian said, easily dodging when the one attacking her attempted to slice at her. They moved far too slow to hit either of us, but the way Vivian did it showed absolute contempt for their speed.

_Can't say I blame her_, I thought. _They must've put all their skill points into STR and nothing else_.

I sidestepped a downward slash by my pirate before blasting him backwards with a Sword Skill. Vivian's appeared on top of him only a second later, her standing with one foot forward and sword thrust out in front of her.

The captain looked stricken. "Who…who are you?"

"You can call me the Crimson Swordsman," I said, tipping my hat. "And this is my cohort, the Scarlet Viper." _Not bad, for something I came up with on the fly_, I thought. _Can't say I get originality points for the Crimson Swordsman, though_.

"I'll remember this," the captain said, stepping back and looking around at his fallen men.

"Please, spread the word," I said. "Might as well solidify our beater status."

"Yes…only beaters could've possibly beat _my_ men!"

I rolled my eyes, and Vivian just smirked and said, "Keep believing that."

I poised on the guardrail then casually leaped back onto the deck of the ship, Vivian following along behind, her fear apparently forgotten. We severed the grappling hooks that joined the two ships.

"We're almost there now!" Vivian said happily.

"_And_ you haven't had a panic attack," I said.

"Don't jinx it," she said, blissfully surveying her surroundings.

"You must believe you're not going to fall," I said.

"There's a guardrail."

"That's the spirit," I said, a breeze gently moving my hair as we sailed toward the island that held the entrance to the dungeon.

A couple minutes later, we were standing on the dock and walking towards the quaint town that seemed to be rather haphazardly scattered around a large opening in the central pillar.

"Which one do you think's the inn?" Vivian asked as we walked into the town square. The buildings were all made of completely wood, as haphazardly built as the town was planned. Some leaned to one side, others had doors or windows in odd places…only one, the tallest, looked like a normal building.

"That one," I said, pointing to said building.

"Just because it's tall doesn't mean—" She stopped when she noticed the inn placard hanging from a pole jutting out from a large balcony on the second floor.

"It's generally a good guess, though," I said, walking with a little more bounce in my step at being proven correct.

The inn's common room was pretty much devoid of NPCs, except for a tired-looking barkeep who was cleaning an ale mug. A fire crackled merrily in the hearth; tables were scattered randomly around the room. Basically, it looked like you'd think an inn would look.

"Can I help you?" the barkeep asked.

_Sometimes it's hard to think this is a game, the NPCs are so realistic_, I thought. "We'd like two rooms, please," I said politely, pulling up the wallet screen.

"That will be 2000 Col per room," the barkeep replied, putting the mug down and walking out in front of the bar to meet us.

"Chump change," I said, because it was. Being a beater definitely had its benefits.

The barkeep led us up the stairs (which, since this seemed to be an extremely stereotypical inn, creaked) and to our rooms. Both were nice and homely, with a window looking out to the expansive sky, fireplaces, and private bathrooms.

_If Floor 3's this nice, I can only imagine what Floor 10, 20, or 30's going to be like_, I thought.

"Thank you," I said, throwing a 100-Col coin at the barkeep as a tip.

The barkeep bowed and backed out of the room. I plopped into one of the armchairs in Vivian's room.

"So, think we can handle the boss tomorrow?" I asked, twiddling my thumbs casually.

"After seeing those players? I think it's going to take them a month at least to clear it by themselves."

I nodded. "That's exactly what I was thinking. Any preparations you want to make?"

"I'm geared up. You?"

I nodded once again. "Let's do it at dawn."

"Dawn?"

"I don't want that annoying newbie trying to talk to us as equals after we kill the boss again," I said.

"Don't be so harsh. He's just trying to survive in this world."

"He could ask less high and mighty about it," I said. "He thinks he's better than all the other players, it seems, but he's really not."

"You're sounding high and mighty about it yourself," she said.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just irritated at his condescending attitude," I said. "I can't stand those kinds of people."

She rolled her eyes. "Hypocrite. Now get out, I'm hitting the sack early."

"'Night," I said, walking out.

"See you tomorrow," she said.

"Cya."

* * *

**A/N: Another ending I'm less than happy with, but I didn't want to have them walking into the boss room. That seems a little...**

**...er, too good for me. xD But as usual, thanks for reading, everyone! And _special_ thanks to all of those awesome people who followed, favorited, and/or reviewed! I love all you guys!**

**So, what's all your New Years Resolutions? Mine's to not procrastinate so much! And it probably won't work, I'll be honest. But hey, if this chapter's out on time, it's a step in the right direction, innit?**

**But once again, thanks for reading, and I hope you're looking forward to the next chapter!**


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